Roman Emperor Justinian I: Coin, history, and pictures

Picked this one off of our very own JAZ Numismatics. Wanted a Justinian follis with a decent bust and a face not totally worn down without shelling out a couple hundred bucks, and this one fit the bill.

Justinian, Byzantine Empire
AE follis
Obv: D N IVSTINI-ANVS P P AVG, helmeted, cuirassed bust facing, holding cross on globe and shield, cross to right
Rev: Large M, ANNO to left, cross above, regnal year XX (20) to right and star, Γ below
Date: 546 AD
Mint: Theopolis (Antioch)
Mintmark: 9HЧΠ (• above Π)
Ref: SB 220
(attribution info from Wildwinds/Helevtica)



(history shamelessly copied from a prior thread of mine, with a few minor edits and additions)



Justinian I (birth name: Petrus Sabbatius) was emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire (a.k.a the Byzantine Empire) from 527 to 565 AD. His uncle was Justin, a guard with the Excubitors (the imperial guard) who would soon become emperor after Anastasius' death. Justin adopted Petrus Sabbatius (and thus giving Petrus his new name Justinian, indicating that he is Justin's adopted son) and brought him to live in Constantinople. There Justinian also served with the Excubitors for some time, and became one of Justin's close associates when Justin became Roman Emperor in 518.

Over the next decade, Justinian quickly grew in importance, becoming consul and the overall commander of the army in the east. With his uncle's death in 527, Justinian became Roman Emperor. As emperor, Justinian actively participated in the running of his empire, and became known as the "emperor who never sleeps". One of his lasting achievements was the compilation of all Roman law up to that point: the Codex Justinianus.

He was nearly deposed and killed however, when in 532, supporters of the two popular chariot teams in Constantinople joined together and demanded the removal of several unpopular officials. They then turned their efforts to deposing Justinian himself. The Nika Riots were the worst instance of civil disobedience in Constantinople's history, and Justinian was ready to flee the capital when he was convinced to stay and put down the rioters by his wife, the courtesan-turned-empress Theodora. Justinian then took charge and order his generals Belisarius and Mundus (both would later gain fame fighting in the Gothic War) to put down the riots with force of arms. The Church of the Holy Wisdom did not escape the devastation inflicted by the riots, and would later be rebuilt on an even grander scale on Justinian's orders, and would become world famous as the Hagia Sofia.

An important long-term goal of Justinian was to recover for the Roman Empire the western territories that were lost to the barbarians in the 5th century (renovatio imperii: "restoration of the empire"). The jewel in this crown was the city of Rome, by now under the control of King Theodoric and his Ostrogoths. After concluding peace with the Persians, Justinian launched an invasion against the Vandal Kingdom in North Africa (centered at Carthage). After achieving victory in that war, Justinian sent his armies to also invade Ostrogoth-held Italy and Visigoth-held Hispania (with the latter, Justinian "intervened" in a dynastic dispute among the Visigoths). Italy was fully reconquered after a long and very difficult war, and southern Hispania (by then known as Spania) ended up back in imperial control. Ultimately these expensive wars of reconquest produced fleeting results; most of the newly won territories would be lost over the next two centuries, with most of Italy falling to the Lombards, North Africa conquered by the Muslims, and southern Hispania taken back by the Visigoths.

Justinian died in 565 AD, and was succeeded by his niece's husband, Justin II.



Click the images to enlarge (some do not enlarge further, though)

Before/after Justinian's conquests:



Vandalic War, 533-534 AD



First phase of the Gothic War, 535-540 AD (the conflict ran until 554 AD):



Images of Byzantine soldiers from around the time of Justinian:





(this one is a guardsman I believe)





Please feel free to post whatever is relevant!

 

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Very nice coin, with a history write up that I was unaware of. Great pick up.

 

Very nice coin! Nice post too.

 

Great coin. I made an offer on it as well....just a little too late. Glad it went to a great home.

The history is what sucked me in and this is a great write up.

 

Fantastic write-up, recycled from a previous thread or not!

 

Excellent post, @ValiantKnight ! The coin is great—the king's face has plenty of detail. The maps (I love maps) and illustrations really help to convey the historic timeframe.

 

What a fantastic post @ValiantKnight
I think Justinian is one of the most polarizing emperors of the Byzantine Empire. He did much to reclaim the lost provinces of the west, splendidly rebuilt the Hagia Sophia, and reformed the Roman law code, yet he also spent vast sums of money on his wars and buildings that left the empire much worse off financially.
I have a few coins from Justinian.

Justinian I Bronze Follis, 1st officina, Constantinople mint, 540 - 541 A.D.
23.635g, 39.3mm
Obv: D N IVSTINIANVS PP AVG, helmeted and cuirassed bust facing, globus cruciger in right, shield on left, cross right, shield decorated with horseman;
Rev: large M (40 nummi), cross above, ANNO left, regnal year X/II/II (year 14) right, A (1st officina) below, CON (Constantinople) in exergue; reverse double struck.
DOC I 39a

Justinian I Bronze Follis, 2nd officina, Cyzicus (Kapu Dagh, Turkey) mint, 542 - 543 A.D.
19.765g, 39.4mm
Obv: D N IVSTINIANVS PP AVG, helmeted and cuirassed bust facing, globus cruciger in right hand, shield in left hand, to right cross.
Rev: large M (40 nummi), cross above, A/N/N/O left, regnal year X/V right, B (officina 2) below, KYZ (Cyzicus) in exergue.
SBCV 207

Justinian I Bronze Follis, 2nd officina, Carthage (near Tunis, Tunisia) mint, 534 - 539 A.D.
12.942g, 28.5mm
Obv: D N IVSTINIANVS PP AG, diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust right.
Rev: large M (40 nummi), cross above, star left, cross right, B below, KART in exergue.
SBCV 259

 

Great coin @ValiantKnight I love the obverse.

Here is my only coin of Justinian.
JUSTINIAN I (527-565). Struck 527-538 GOLD Solidus.
(21.74 mm, 4.45 g)
Constantinople.
Obv: D N IVSTINIANVS P P AVG.
Helmeted, draped and cuirassed bust facing, holding globus cruciger and shield.
Rev: VICTORIA AVGGG Θ / CONOB.
Angel standing facing, holding long staff surmounted by cross and globus cruciger; star to right.
Sear 139.
Condition: Very fine.
Ex: Numismatik-Nauman auction 48, Lot 693 November 20, 2016.

 

Nice bronze, I just have a half follis.


Justinian I, (527-565 A.D.)
Ae 1/2 Follis
O: DN IVSTINI-ANVS PP AVG,Diademed draped and cuirassed bust right.
R: Large K, cross to left, star above and below, officinia gamma to right.
22mm
9.9g
Constantinople mint
SB 164; Doc 33

 

Great post and history lesson. For others interested in some historical fiction try Count Belisarius by Robert Graves.

 

Very enjoyable post and historical summary! My university library, a comprehensive collection of 270,000 books on all aspects of ancient Greece, Rome, Byzantium, and modern Greece, recently hung in our reading room a copy of the Ravenna San Vitale portrait of Justinian. A photo of it is attached, as well as one of my Justinian folles.

 

As far as condition, this is the best Byzantine coin I have so far. It's a decanummum ( 10 nummi ). The letter I (Iota) on reverse stands for number 10 in Greek numerals. The coin weighs 4.38 g.

 

Cool @ValiantKnight -Dude! This is where my Roman Rulers collection stops, because he was a good one. Your write-up is great, even though you plagerized yourself (LOL).

Mine:


BZ Justinian I 527-565 CE AE Folles 30mm 17g 40 Nummi M monogram

 

Awesome folles @ValiantKnight! That folles was the one I was interested in but you beat me to the punch (to be fair, I was about a week late ). Justinian folles was one of the coins that dragged me into this series. Here is a run of most of the denominations of Justinian, sprinkled across different mints:

Byzantine Empire: Justinian I (527-565) Æ Follis, Constantinople, RY 13 (Sear 163; DOC 38b; MIBE 95a)




Byzantine Empire: Justinian I (527-565) Half Follis, Constantinople (Sear-165)




Byzantine Empire: Justinian I (527-565) Æ Decanummium, Ravenna (Sear-326; DOC I-353; MIBE-229a; Ranieri-395)




Byzantine Empire: Justinian I (527-565 CE) Æ Pentanummium, Constantinople (Sear 170; DOC 96d)

 

Great post and thanks for taking the time to spread the news of Byzantine coins. They are my drug of choice.

 

Great stuff posted and thanks for the kind comments! While I have recently expanded my coin interests a bit, early Byzantine coinage continues to be one of my main focuses in collecting. And it doesn't really get any more Byzantine than a large follis of the empire's most well-known ruler, Justinian I.

Of my many coins of him, this one is my favorite:

Justinian I, Byzantine Empire
AV solidus
Obv: D N IVSTINI-ANVS P P AVG, helmeted, cuirassed bust facing, holding cross on globe and shield
Rev: VICTORI-A AVGGG delta, angel standing facing, holding P-headed cross and cross on globe, star in right field
Mint: Constantinople
Mintmark: CONOB
Date: 542-565 AD
Ref: SB 140

 

Might interest you to know but this one used to belong to me I sold it to JA I believe and I think I used the cash towards another Justinian (my rare Rome-mint half-follis).

 

My ugly Justinianus, nearly caricatural !
Antioch mint, 527-565 AD, SearByz 244

 

It still is a nice example of a coin from this time period, for sure!